Life on the Edge
by T-Rexaurus
Summary: Some people choose to live lives dictated by the government. Others, don't. A small cabal formed in the depths of the Anchor district, and is now hoping to be able to gain new members, and continue living on the edge of society.
1. The Edge

White. Clean. Safe.

The city of Glass. The place where nothing goes wrong. Its citizens are happy, and the government monitors every move of everyone inside its barriers. No one fights this. No one wants to fight this.

But there are some who do. Ones who have the courage to wear black in a world of white. Ones who have courage to stand, and fight this pacifying system.

Runners, the ones who knew that the system was not perfect, and decided that it should not be followed. In the city of Glass, the Runners live on the edge of society, doing jobs for those willing to pay, ranging from information-delivery, to burglary. Each Runner can be easily identified by a tag, and their clothing. They operate in groups, known as cabals, and are lead to their drop point by a Tracker, a retired Runner.

"Left or right?" The young voice spoke, as he quickly tapped the device in his ear, "Hello? Ada?" He called, once he didn't receive a reply. "Ada! I've-"

" _Yeah, I got it! Go right!_ " The female voice interrupted his soon-to-be shouting. " _My- damn map closed. From here you should be alright, just take the next door._ "

The boy followed the orders, and took a quick right, before being met with said door. There was shouting behind him, and before it could reach him, he slammed his foot on the doorknob, and managed to thankfully open it. But, with the noise that made, it would've been a miracle to not attract anyone. Even so, he opened the door, and made his way out of the building, and into the scorching sun. It wasn't fun to be dressed in black while outside. His eyes caught a red figure, that showed him the a way off of the building, and as any other Runner would do, he decided to follow it. Leaping over a few crates, and sliding under two pipes, he was, yet again, met with an impasse. Not even the red figure could help him now, as it went the opposite way he wanted to go. "Ada?" He called, hoping for it to be heard, "You're there, right? Which way now?" Thankfully, the answer was much swifter this time.

" _If you jump on the roof to your left, you should be able to see the building. It's the big one, all glass._ "

"They're all made of glass! It's the city's name!" The girl was met with frustrated shouting, to which she apparently decided not to respond, " _Look. Just-_ " A sigh escaped her, " _You_ ** _should_** _be able to see a crane. The building you're going for is the one right next to it._ "

"Good. I'm on it. See you when I get back." He began running, before hearing another sigh, " _Men."_

"I can still hear you." He replied, after landing on the required roof. "I can also see the building. Which floor was it?" He peered at the structure, wondering just how much time it took to make it. A month? An year? Maybe more? The city was always evolving. And sometimes, not even its residents could keep up with it. Or it might just be him.

" _It's not that far, actually. If you walk along the crane, you should be a floor above your drop point. And, conveniently, there is also a balcony which you can jump on. Good luck, Jun. Oh, and when you get back, I would love some food. Surprise me._ " Even if he tried to argue with that, he knew he had no chance to turn her back from her desire to see him spend his hard-earned scrip. He looked behind him, no blues to be seen. He, thankfully, lost them a while ago. His hand then reached for his package, and he opened it, to check if it was damaged. No signs of anything broken. Good, now at least he won't have to spend the next few hours feeling guilty about delivering a damaged package. And also, not getting the full payment.

Jun made his way on the crane and looked below him. The balcony was, as said, right there, and it looked like an easy thing to land-

"Hey! What the hell do you think you're doing?!" A sudden, loud, and gruff voice asked. His gaze snapped upwards, and right in front of him was an old looking man, no older than fifty, leaning on his balcony and yelling at the poor boy. His eyes widened, and, with reflexes he didn't even know he had, he leaped on the old man's balcony. The man turned, to run back inside the house, but the Runner's movements were far more swift than his, and thus, he was quickly knocked unconscious by a single blow to the back of the head. Soon, he'll wake up in his bed, thinking that this was all just a dream.

" _What was that?_ " The female voice asked, " _Did someone see you? Are you alright?_ "

"Yeah. Don't worry. I don't think he had time to call anyone about me. Also, while you're here, I'll tell you that you're not getting anything." As they chatted, and mostly bickered, Jun made his way to the lower balcony, planted the package, and quickly dashed off, now through the front entrance. He easily blended in through the crowd, as long as he kept his gaze focused on the ground, and he didn't make eye contact with anybody. No blues. Good, then he was right. The old man didn't manage to alert KrugerSec. His gaze snapped to a random pipe, that seemed to be leading to a shorter roof. That was good enough for him. The Runner quickly made his way to it, and with no one in sight, he started climbing it. It didn't take long to reach the end of it, and climb onto the roof. But, from there, it seemed like he was stuck. It looked like this was one of the fewer, shorter structures that lead nowhere. With a heavy sigh, he sent his arm towards the taller building, letting the MAG rope latch onto anything that it could find up there, so that he could be pulled up. He was actually surprised when he suddenly began to feel himself be lifted upwards, but he didn't fight it. As soon as he reached the apex, he broke into a sprint, heading north-west.

Reaching the roofs of the Anchor, he stopped, and looked around, only to make his way into a narrow space, between two buildings, at the end of which was hidden a white door. Jun quickly opened it, headed inside, locked it, and with an irritated expression, headed deeper into the hideout.

"Ada! I'm back!" His frown slowly disappeared as he looked around. The place was abandoned at this hour. There weren't a lot of people in the cabal, but even so, they managed to get by. "Ada? You here?" He called, as he unzipped his jacket, and threw it on a nearby couch. Now left in a black T-shirt, and a pair of loose pants, he ran a hand through his dark, short hair. He waited, a few seconds, before frowning and quickly making his way to the girl's room. "Ada, I swear-" He stopped dead in his tracks as he opened the door. Sitting there, in front of the various screens, in her wheelchair, was the girl that led him to his objective, now sleeping soundlessly. He smiled, made his way over, grabbed a blanket from her bed and wrapped her in it. He then shut off the computers, placed the wrapped meal on the table, and with a smile, silently made his way out.

"Night, sis'."


	2. The Girl

Jun was already in the common area when the girl woke up. As she made her way in, she couldn't help but notice his lack of any worries. The room was, what one would call, a mess, with running shoes and jackets all thrown around the main sofa, which was aimed towards the large screen. Her expression bore a deep frown, as she looked at the boy while he ate a bowl of cereal and watched the morning news.

"Jun?" She called, taking her place next to the sofa, "Did you let me sleep on the desk?" It wasn't actually a question, but she did want to know if he made it back last night, or if he arrived this morning. The boy merely shrugged, "If I woke you up, you would've yelled. Plus-" He pointed towards her, smiling, "-I brought you food. You can't blame me now."

"I can blame you for the mess, though." She quickly shot back, with a grin. She then crossed her arms over her chest, as she watched her brother continue to eat his cereal. "You know you're not going on any run until this room is as clean as it was yesterday."

"It wasn't **that** clean."

"But it was cleaner." It seems she won this round, yet again. The boy merely sighed, stood, and began gathering the clothes. As she was reveling in her victory, she failed to see the leather jacket flung towards her. Jun gave a chuckle, before the action was returned, and he found himself hit by a random shoe. "Agh!" He yelped, and gave his sister a look of betrayal. She merely shrugged, the same impish grin still there, as she waved to the runner, and headed back to her room, "Oh!" She suddenly spoke, "Make sure you put those shoes where they belong! We don't want another 'Can't find my shoes!' episode, now do we?" Laughter echoed after she slid the door closed, and the young Jun was left glaring at the wall. With another sigh, he started gathering, and placing away, clothes and shoes, before something caught his attention. He turned back to the screen, which showed the face of a young reporter, in front of what looked like the Elysium Labs. He dropped the clothes as he swiftly stepped in front of the screen, and watched the news report.

"Last night, the alarms were tripped by what the authorities have deemed an "Omnistat Spy". There's not much information about the break-in, but for now, it is unknown if anything of value was stolen. Back to-"

"Mute." He clapped his hands, once, and the screen went silent. He sighed, before yelling, "I'm heading out!" He couldn't hear the answer, but he knew it wouldn't be a good one. After all, he –did- only just hide the mess behind the sofa. Even the bowl of cereal remained half-filled, and as he remembered that, he began angrily mumbling about 'not having enough time for anything'. "Ada? Can you hear me?" He asked, as he tapped the device in his ear. This area had a bit of a connectivity problem, so it was always better if he just checked in, before leaving the district.

" _Yeah, I'm here. What's the beat?_ " The girl quickly responded, as she opened her map of the city.

"Oh, well, you know just-" The link between the two seemed to waver, as the runner began hearing static. He tapped the device, "Ada?" He called, once again, while he leapt on another building's roof. He was headed towards the city's center, so he found it odd that the connection wasn't strong. "Ada?" He called once again, before stopping dead in his tracks. Through the static, another voice could be barely made out. " _…Locked…Reinforce…Downtown…KSec…_ " Even if he didn't know the whole story, Jun heard enough. He sprinted forwards, slid under two pipes, and jumped onto another roof. The KrugerSec 'Guardians', as they seemed to be officially called, were already in view, three of them running after a dark figure. Jun couldn't make out its features, just that it wasn't dressed in any light colors. He looked around, searching for a way off this roof, and onto the other. "Ada!" He called out, but the only thing that responded, was static. He didn't have time to search for help now, instead, he began running in the same direction they were, making sure to not fall over, or miss one of the big jumps, between buildings. Now that would be a tragedy, to die while wanting to help a fellow runner. He casted away those thoughts, as soon as he laid eyes upon the surveillance camera between the two buildings. Seizing this opportunity, he neared the edge and leapt. Most would panic at this moment, as they saw the ground below them, but not runners, for this was usual for them. His arm quickly shot upwards, and sent the carbon-fiber rope towards the camera. As soon as it latched onto it, the speed allowed Jun to move forwards, and close enough to the other building that he was able to let go of the surveillance device, and safely land on the opposite roof. He huffed, before looking to his right, and rushing forwards. The building that the three Guardians stopped at held no way of exit, and the runner was closed off with the three, their back to the wall. To make matters worse, from behind the three another one made his way through.

"Oh no…" The young man mumbled, when he could make out who exactly joined the fight. Clad in a black and blue armor, his face covered by a helmet, the Sentinel walked towards the walled off runner, who was now fighting off the three KrugerSec. She won't be able to fight them off alone, was the only thing that came to Jun's mind before he began running, once again. Once he reached the edge, he leapt, and aimed himself towards the sentinel. He didn't even see the young runner coming, when he landed face first on the ground, now seemingly uncounscious. He huffed, and gazed upwards, only to find the runner standing, and the three guards next to her. It was clear that it wasn't actually a man, even if the face was covered.

"You're welcome." He suddenly spoke, with a grin.

"I could've taken them." She responded, and crossed her arms, "And you might be?" As she looked at him, Jun couldn't see any trace of anger, just confusion. Then again, he wasn't that good with expressions, if someone frowned, he'd just assume they're joking. So, perhaps she **was** angry. But, he chose not to address it, nor did he decide to answer her question.

"The one who got your message." He stood, and pocketed his hands, "Why it messed up my frequency I don't know, so I was wondering if you could tell me." He held a smile, which slowly turned into a grin.

The girl merely shrugged, "Give me your name, and, maybe, I will answer that question. How does that sound, hm?" Now, the girl was starting to get on his nerves. He couldn't blame her, though. Information is pricey in these times, but, he decided she could be trusted, so he conceded.

"Jun-Ho." He replied, with a sigh, "I have one more question to ask you, though. Why did you do it? I thought a tracker was supposed to help you." He raised an eyebrow, and waited for her to answer, but, he was rudely interrupted by the yelling in his ear.

" _Jun! Answer me! What's going on?!_ " The girl's voice shouted through the ear-piece. " _I swear Jun, if you're hurt, I am going to personally find you and kill you. I'm not joking, you damned brat, answer me!_ " The yelling only got louder and louder, and the young runner couldn't help but shout back, "I'm fine! Stop with the yelling, will you?!" He let out another sigh, heavier this time.

"No- Ada, I'm not- Would you stop yelling and listen to me for a second?!" The other runner was looking at Jun, as if he was not human. A smile spread on her covered face, and she began laughing, while the other was arguing with his sibling. "Alright, Jun-Ho, you've captured my attention. I'll answer your quest-" She didn't even get to finish her sentence before he started yelling, yet again. The girl couldn't help but chuckle at this, as she went to touch his shoulder, "These guys are going to wake up soon. I say we leave, hm?"

Now that, captured his attention. While his sister ranted about 'safety measures', he decided to follow the older runner away from the roofs and into a building under construction, in which both of them took a seat on one of the crates, and looked at each other, waiting for one of them to speak. The girl sighed, before she was the one to break the ice. "The truth is, I'm not part of a cabal. Not anymore, at least. I, uh, decided that I should go my own way. I guess that didn't work out in my favor."

"So, you decided to ask for help because…?" He trailed off, letting the girl speak.

"I did?" She seemed as confused as he was.

"That's how I met you. Wouldn't have known you were around here, were it not for that." The boy replied. At that, the girl slapped her forhead, groaning, "I sent the wrong message." She spoke, before drawing a deep breath, "I think I know what you received. Not my message. While I was running from the three 'Musketeers', I wanted to send a pre-recorded message to their comms, and mess with their path. I guess what you heard was my failed attempt at throwing them off. I **am** going to apologize for that. Sorry." She stood, and patted the dust off of her pants, "I'm glad to have met you, Jun. I hope we'll meet again, you're an interesting guy. Oh, and tell your friend that I said 'hi'." And with a wave, she began making her way off.

Jun was left as confused as before, standing in the now-dark construction site. "This day could have been worse, really." He mumbled, before walking away from the building. He slowly made his way to the Anchor, only stopping to get some food for the night. When he reached the roofs of the district, he headed down the same narrow space, and opened the same white door. He entered slowly, in the dark room, not at all thankful for the plastic bag the food was kept in. The 'lair' seemed bigger during the day, but then again, five rooms, one of which was a training room, wasn't that much to begin with. They'll have to find a new place. But now, with the limited amount of people in the cabal, it was good enough. Him and his sister were two, but then, there were three more, one of which didn't come by this place for enough time to call it home. Just run after run, with sleep in-between. He always wondered how that guy was able to work properly.

"Ada?" He called, as he dropped the bag on a nearby table, and made his way to another room. "Ada, are you-" A sense of déjà vu ran through him, when he wasn't able to finish his sentence. Before him, in the small kitchen, was his sister stirring a pot of a red mixture. "Ada. What are you doing?" He spoke, as he gazed towards the bubbling liquid.

"Making food. Duh." Her response was quick, as if this was the most normal thing for her. Jun continued to stare, blinking once or twice. "…Are you sure? Because I've bought actual edible food."

The only answer he received was a towel to the face, as the girl continued to stir her mixture, " _Men._ " She mumbled, as Jun made his way out of the room.

Suffice to say, he didn't have the courage to eat any of her cooking, and as soon as she tasted her 'art', she joined the runner, both ending their night with takeout food. Apparently, tomorrow was the day when he'd check out the Labs. Who knows? Maybe he'll find something interesting.


	3. The Job

_"_ _I've got a question. How do you always find yourself in these situations?"_

As the tracker asked that, Jun took a sharp left, opened a door, and entered a random room, in which he quickly shut himself in. Outside, the sound of footsteps echoed throughout the empty halls, before slowly disappearing. The boy breathed a sigh of relief, and decided to answer his sister's question, "You're saying it like it's a hobby."

 _"_ _It seems like one. When you go out, you either find the KSec, or people running from the KSec."_ She spoke, and began downloading some new maps. As she did, she calmly took a few bites out of last night's meal.

"Thanks for the kind words." The boy whispered, before standing and looking around the empty room. There wasn't much to be seen, besides a desk, a computer, and a few files. The only escape he could find were the large windows, but they couldn't be opened. It seemed like he'd have to use brute force. "Where am I supposed to hide this again?" He took out the capsule, and looked it over, to check if it was broken. The answer wasn't as swift as last time, given that the girl was eating her meal.

 _"_ _Right above y- Wait. Don't move. Someone's right in front of the door."_

"You telling me to not move is making it harder to do so!" He retorted, in a whisper. The handle turned, and Jun's eyes widened. In a last ditch effort, he dropped his bag, pushed it away, and took a deep breath. Right now, he was betting his life on the fact that neither the guard nor the apartment tenant would enter that door. As soon as the tall, blue-clad man entered the room, Jun made sure to play his role correctly.

"Hey! I'm changing in here!" He yelled, and went to the door, promptly placing his hands against it, and trying to push the man out. It worked, and Jun couldn't be more thankful. With a few grumbles, from the guard's side, of course, it seemed he was not even suspected as the one who broke into the building. As soon as it closed, the young runner slid against it and released the breath he didn't even know he was holding in. His sister was eager to know what exactly happened, as soon as the room went silent. _"Jun? Are you alright? What did you do?"_

He ran a hand through his hair, and took another deep breath, before moving to the windows. "I'll tell you when I get back. Do you have any way of opening these? I think he's still outside." The runner didn't dare raise his voice as he spoke, sparing a few glances behind him as he did so.

The day wasn't even supposed to go like this. He silently cursed himself as he thought about the mistake he'd done. Accepting a run, just to spare a friend the walk? He was an idiot. He knew this couldn't have been a good sign, but still, it's too late now. Deliver a message in the middle of a hiCaste apartment complex? It should've sounded bad the first time he heard it. Fool. It doesn't matter. Next time, he'll be more careful. As he was thinking of his next plans, he failed to hear the calls from his sister. She had to, quite brutally so, yell into the microphone to be heard. The boy yelped, before quickly scanning his surroundings. The guard was long gone.

Jun turned back to the girl, returning her attention-seeking gesture with his own shout, albeit not as loud, "What?!"

 _"_ _The window."_

His gaze lifted to the now gone glass, which had been moved to the side by the magic of technology. He grumbled a 'thanks', and grabbed his backpack, before moving to the ledge between the glass and the outside. Unfortunately for him, there was no actual balcony, so one slip-up could mean the end of his running career. And his life, as the distance between the room and the ground was quite large.

With the thoughts of impending doom tucked away in the back of his mind, Jun took hold of the top ledge and pushed himself up, to the balcony above him. How luck seemed to find him, just when he needed it most. Easily finding his way in the above room, and with the help of his Tracker, he planted the package, and was on his way out. Using the same apartment he came through, Jun easily opened the door, and went into the hallway. The sound of his footsteps was the only thing heard through the long hallway, but even so, he felt anxious. As if, something wasn't right. To make it worse, he knew that the place wasn't deserted, and anyone could find him in the hallway. For a tenant, it wouldn't be very hard to make the difference between an outCaste and a hiCaste. It was all in the clothes. And, maybe, the attitude as well.

Fortunately, he was able to find an elevator, and make his way to the lobby.

As soon as the doors opened, five Protectors stood before him, their weapons aimed at the runner. His eyes widened, and he couldn't do anything but raise his hands, and look at the KSec employees.

Immediately after the first one moved to stand behind him, and aimed to cuff him, Jun sent his right elbow into his mask, turned to him, and with the other hand, took hold of the Protector's baton, sending it into his jaw. With as much swiftness as before, he wrapped his right arm around the guard's neck and placed himself behind him. The runner didn't hold this position for long, and taking advantage of the fact that the others were all huddled up in front of the elevator doors, he used his foot to push the trapped one into them. He stumbled, and fell on his teammates, who, instinctively, went to help him get up. He took advantage of this situation, and used the fallen employee as a springboard, easily leaping over the small crowd, and rushing out the front entrance.

What greeted him, was, well, expected. Three Ksec automobiles were parked in front of the building, and behind them were about ten of the same employees as before. Everyone wanted the glory of catching a runner, it seemed.

Jun-Ho the young rebel, the one who always thought life has to be lived on the edge, now regretted those words. He was standing in front of his own death sentence. His ears rung, and he could already feel his vision blur. He was scared. He was so scared of what would happen now to him.

Just because he chose to help a friend.


End file.
